Moerman leads Efes to fourth straight win

Anadolu Efes Istanbul recorded its fourth consecutive win at home on Friday by downing cross-town rivals Darussafaka Tekfen Istanbul 82-68. Efes improved to 13-6 in the standings to remain in fourth place while Darussafaka dropped to 2-17 and is 16th overall. Adrien Moerman led the winners with 15 points. Vasilije Micic added 11 while Rodrigue Beaubois had 10 for Efes. Toney Douglas led Darussafaka with 17 points. Jeremy Evans added 14 for the guests. Efes led 21-14 after 10 minutes, extended its margin to 45-25 at halftime and then again to 74-48 midway through the fourth quarter, more than enough to seal the outcome.

Zanis Peiners got Darussafaka going with a layup-plus-free throw and a driving basket for a 0-5 lead. Moerman struck from downtown and Metecan Birsen followed Micic's layup with a triple to give Efes its first lead, 8-7. Micic buried a running jumper before a power layup by Bryant Dunston boosted the hosts' lead to 12-7. Micic and Krunoslav Simon scored around the basket but Stanton Kidd and Douglas brought the guests a bit closer, 16-12. Evans scored in transition but Beaubois followed a corner three-pointer with a jumper for a 21-14 Efes lead after 10 minutes. Moerman took over with jump hook, a dunk and a layup early in the second quarter, making it a double-digit game, 27-16. Evans answered from beyond the arc, but James Anderson and Micic restored a 32-19 Efes margin. Michael Eric and Douglas tried to change things for Darussafaka, but Brock Motum, Shane Larkin and Simon helped Efes break the game open, 42-23. A dunk by Evans and a three-pointer by Beaubois fixed the halftime score at 45-25. Simon buried a triple and Moerman added a put-back layup for a 50-25 Efes lead soon after the break. Micic capped an 8-0 run with a bomb from downtown. Douglas stepped up for Darussafaka but Moerman and Simon kept Efes fully in charge, 59-32. Evans and Douglas brought Darussafaka within 66-45 after 30 minutes. Evans buried another triple early in the fourth quarter but a 6-0 run that Dogus Balbay capped with a layup sealed the outcome, 74-48. Darussafaka kept fighting but Efes cruised to a well-deserved win.

Pivotal performer

Moerman provided his usual energy and was really inspired at both ends, often turning defense into offense himself. He finished the game with 15 points on 6-of-6 two-point shots, 6 rebounds, 2 assists and 4 steals for a PIR of 24 in just 21 minutes.

Game-changing moment

Beaubois had 5 quick points late in the first quarter, then Moerman caught fire with a jumper, a slam and a layup, boosting the difference into double digits at 27-16 margin. Efes stayed fully focused from that moment onwards and kept the margin safe the rest of the way.

Stellar stat

Great hustle allowed Efes to break the game open before halftime. The hosts had 6 offensive rebounds, 6 steals and 4 blocks in the first half while forcing Darussafaka into 2-for-12 three-point shooting and 9 turnovers. It all added up to a 20-point halftime margin.

Did you notice?

Metecan Birsen waited more than five years since his EuroLeague debut to make his first three-point shot in the competition. Birsen made his EuroLeague with Fenerbahce Istanbul on October 25, 2013, but after playing that 2013-14 season, didn't return until this campaign. He missed three times from downtown before finally hitting a three-point shot early in his first start this season, and his only other one since 2013.

Next game:

In Round 20 next week, Efes visits Real Madrid on Thursday to try to keep its streak alive against the defending champs. A day later, Darussafaka hosts KIROLBET Baskonia Vitoria-Gasteiz.

Head Coaches

ATAMAN, ERGIN

Anadolu Efes Istanbul

"We are in a very good position in the EuroLeague, and we will now play the last 10, 11 games. We are fully motivated to protect our situation in the standings. We started the game very aggressive, following our strategy. We didn't let them move the ball easily, took the rebound and improved the tempo every minute of the game. We were successful at improving the tempo, and tonight we used all 12 players in the rotation. Everybody was involved in defense and rebounds, and that gave us one more victory playing good basketball. We didn't shoot well tonight, hitting only 29% of our three-point shots, which is lower than our season average, but we played perfect basketball. We will think separately about every game. We won the first four games in the second half (of the regular season) and now we will play against Real Madrid. It will be difficult, but we played perfect basketball against them in Istanbul, losing the game in the last quarter. Now we will go there to change the situation. We will go there to win, but of course, we respect Pablo Laso and Real Madrid, last year's EuroLeague champion. We will go there to play our basketball and if we play the way we did in Istanbul, we will win this time."

ERNAK, SELCUK

Darussafaka Tekfen Istanbul

"First of all, congratulations to Anadolu Efes. It was two different stories in this game; the first half and the second half were completely different from each other. In the first half, they pushed us out of our rhythm and forced us to turn the ball over 10 times, and they also grabbed 17 rebounds. We tried to come back in the second half, but if you cannot score inside the paint, it is really hard to survive in a game like this. I think the most important keys were that we couldn't score inside and they found really easy ways to score inside the paint. We had 16 turnovers and finished the game with 19 assists, which is a good number, and a good assist-to-turnover ratio. But again, if you cannot score inside the paint more than your opponent, it is really hard to be able to win the game."

Players

MOERMAN, ADRIEN

Anadolu Efes Istanbul

"We come off a tough week with three games and playing against Darussafaka is not easy, but we won. This is the way to keep the fourth place and, right now we need to focus on Real Madrid, because it will be a tough game over there. They will be waiting for us because this is our fourth straight win. We will try to stay confident and try to do something good over there. It is not just me; my teammates found me to score my points. I say thank you to them and it is not about the stats, but about the win. We are happy to win tonight."

BALBAY, DOGUS

Anadolu Efes Istanbul

"I hope I can keep playing this way and help my team win games. Our goal is to keep any opponent below 70 points in each game, and we reached that goal tonight. I think they scored 68 and this is our goal for each game, no matter who we play against. We have to keep getting better at it and reach our goals. We are ready to face Madrid. We have to win these kinds of games, because in order to reach our goals, we have to beat that kind of team. Madrid is one of them and we have to be ready for that one. We had a great game against them at home but couldn't finish them in the end. This time, we have to take care of each quarter and hopefully get the win there."